bastila بسطيلة
Algerian Darja · noun
“bastila” (بسطيلة) is a noun in Algerian Darja meaning pastilla, stuffed filo pie.
Meanings
- pastilla, stuffed filo pie
Usage
Bastila is a pie of very thin pastry sheets, most often filled with chicken, almonds and eggs. It is dusted with sugar and cinnamon, hence its sweet-and-savory taste. In Algeria it is prepared mainly in urban traditions, notably in Tlemcen and Algiers. It is served at festivals, weddings and formal meals. The word is feminine: "bastila bnina" (a good pastilla). It is best known under its Moroccan name "pastilla". There are also fish versions.
Example
ماما دارت بسطيلة بالدجاج للعرس
mama dart bastila bed-djaj l'3ers
“Mom made a chicken pastilla for the wedding.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “bastila” but also “bestila”, “bastilla”, “basstelaa” and “bstila”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Type “bastila” on the Arabic keyboard
In Moroccan Darija
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Moroccan Darija, where it means “pastilla (layered pie)”: bstila in Moroccan.